Hundreds of mourners crammed into a small church in a rural Tennessee town yesterday for the funeral of a slain minister, as townspeople remained mystified over why his wife was allegedly driven to murder him.

It was a fitting funeral for charismatic pastor Matthew Winkler, 31, of the Fourth Street Church of Christ in Selmer, although his 32-year-old wife Mary didn’t attend.

She’s been jailed without bail, charged with first-degree murder.

The couple’s three young daughters followed their father’s flower-draped casket into the church, where he had ministered for nearly a year.

About 500 people attended the service.

Minister Eddie Thompson did not mention Mary Winkler by name or describe the slaying.

“He just said we’re puzzled. That’s the word he used, ‘puzzled,’ ” said mourner Barbara Letson of Decatur, Ala.

Authorities say Winkler’s wife of 10 years confessed to the March 22 shooting.

She was picked up afterward with their three children in Alabama. Tennessee Bureau of Investigation has refused to discuss her motive.